The Effiency Effects of Technical Change in MalianRice Production

The general objective of this study is to examine theefficiency, and the factors that influence theefficiency of irrigated rice farmers in Mali. Aspecial focus is devoted to the quantifying effectsof irrigation scheme rehabilitation. A stochasticparametric frontier analysis is employed using across-sectional data set consisting 147 householdsthat are cultivating 398 rice plots. It is found thatfor rehabilitated areas there is more room toincrease rice production by making a better use ofthe existing technology. For these villages policiesshould be directed to increase the productivity ofmanual-labor through extension education orlabor-saving technologies. On the other hand, farmersin non-rehabilitated villages are relatively moreefficient indicating that there is more need fortechnology improvements, such as improvements inirrigation infrastructure that can enhance productiveuse of seed and nitrogen. A clear message of thestudy is that the extension services should bedirected separately to heterogeneous areas. It isnecessary to identify the structural differences inproduction environments between the areas that arelocated in the same region.